ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka follows India and Bangladesh in highest absolute variety of little one displacements linked to weather-related disasters, a United Nations Youngsters’s Fund – South Asia report confirmed.
“India, given its giant inhabitants, skilled the best absolute variety of little one displacements linked to weather-related disasters throughout this era, totaling 6.9 million throughout all hazards,” in accordance with the report.
“Bangladesh recorded the best relative impacts, with little one displacements representing an estimated 7.2 per cent of its little one inhabitants.
“Sri Lanka adopted carefully, with an estimated 4.6 per cent of its under-18 inhabitants displaced over the previous seven years.”
The nation noticed a median of 965 little one displacements per catastrophe from 2016 to 2022.
Over the seven years, 4.6 p.c or roughly 280,000 Sri Lankan youngsters have been displaced.
Storms brought on 54 p.c of the displacement, whereas floods pressured 44 p.c to depart residence.
Tropical Cyclone Roanu, which in 2016 introduced the heaviest rainfall to Sri Lanka in over a quarter-century, resulted in round 141,000 youngsters in Sri Lanka changing into displaced, the report confirmed.
Nonetheless, most of those had been resulting from pre-emptive displacements, equivalent to evacuations, which implies fatalities had been averted, UNICEF identified.
“When analysing the regional knowledge, it’s essential to acknowledge that many displacement figures stem from pre-emptive evacuations, notably in nations with established evacuation procedures and early-warning insurance policies like Bangladesh, India, and Sri Lanka.
“Whereas these evacuations represent a type of displacement and may create vulnerabilities for kids, they’ve confirmed extremely efficient at defending lives, with fatalities from pure hazards – particularly cyclones – lowering dramatically since implementing such preventive measures.”
South Asians face vulnerability to displacement resulting from weather-related disasters and the impacts of local weather change, the report identified, heightened by rising sea ranges, excessive climate occurrences, and numerous different hazards.
Disasters usually power folks to flee residence, leading to profound socioeconomic penalties.
“Amidst these crises, youngsters face appreciable danger, together with disruptions to their training and healthcare and elevated publicity to safety violations, together with violence and exploitation.”
UNICEF urged governments, donors, improvement companions, and the non-public sector to affix forces to boost youngsters’s safety, preparedness, and inclusion in coverage and motion. (Colombo/Oct6/2025)
